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Valentine Strasser

Valentine Strasser
Head of State of Sierra Leone
In office
1 May 1992 – 16 January 1996
DeputySolomon Musa[1]
Julius Maada Bio[2]
Preceded byYahya Kanu
Succeeded byJulius Maada Bio
Chairman of the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC)
In office
1 May 1992 – 16 January 1996
Preceded byYahya Kanu
Succeeded byJulius Maada Bio
Personal details
Born
Valentine Esegragbo Melvine Strasser

(1967-04-26) 26 April 1967 (age 57)
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Political partyMilitary Junta (National Provisional Ruling Council- NPRC)
ChildrenValentine Strasser Jr
Residence(s)Newton, Sierra Leone
Alma materUniversity of Warwick, Coventry, England, UK
ProfessionArmy officer
ReligionAnglican
Military service
Branch/serviceSierra Leone Army
Years of service1985–1996
RankCaptain
Battles/warsSierra Leone Civil War

Valentine Esegragbo Melvine Strasser (born 26 April 1967) is a former Sierra Leonean military officer who served as head of state of Sierra Leone from 1992 to 1996. He became the world's youngest Head of State in 1992, seizing power three days after his 25th birthday.

Strasser was born and raised in the neighbourhood of Allen Town in the east end of Sierra Leone's capital Freetown to Creole parents. He enlisted in the Republic of Sierra Leone Military Forces (RSLMF) at age eighteen, immediately after graduating from secondary school. In the context of the Sierra Leone Civil War which had erupted in the previous year, he led a coup d'état in 1992 which overthrew president Joseph Saidu Momoh. He then established the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC) military junta. During the war, he hired Executive Outcomes, a South African mercenary firm to repel the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebel group.

As the war continued, after nearly four years in power, Strasser was ousted in a second military coup in 1996,[3] led by his deputy, Brigadier General Julius Maada Bio.[4] Following his overthrow, he lived in England where he unsuccessfully sought asylum. He later unsuccessfully attempted to enter the Gambia in 2000 before eventually returning to Sierra Leone.

  1. ^ Chiefs of State and Cabinet members of foreign governments / National Foreign Assessment Center. 1992May-Oct. 2003. hdl:2027/osu.32435083449264 – via HathiTrust.
  2. ^ Chiefs of State and Cabinet members of foreign governments / National Foreign Assessment Center. 1995Jan-Apr 1995. 2003. hdl:2027/osu.32435083447896 – via HathiTrust.
  3. ^ "SECRETARY-GENERAL DISTURBED BY REPORTS OF COUP D'ETAT IN SIERRA LEONE" (Press release). United Nations. 16 January 1996. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  4. ^ Tikkanen, Amy (19 March 2008). "Sierra Leone - Civil War". Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 2 May 2022.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)

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